Toward the end of the movie, I found several points of interest I believed worthy of mention. My point of reference was/is comparing and contrasting the material found in this documentary of members of a religious cult in South Carolina to my time of involvement with Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) in Spindale, NC. We have noted several comparisons in previous posts, but yet I have found more.

   Near the end of the film, Patrick Provost-Smith a Professor of the History of Christianity at Harvard Divinity School was shown saying these words: “Anyone can claim to be a pastor, if they have a following… What one can look at in terms of a warning sign for realizing one is involved in an extreme group is that one can no longer account for one’s self as a human being as a person with thoughts, with ambitions… if only your pastor can tell you who you are to the extent that you have no story left of your own – leave.”  Does this happen at WOFF? Do any of the faithful regular members have their own story or does Jane Whaley tell them who they are – either directly or indirectly through the use of religious mind control? Quite frankly, while I was in the group, I did not have see how much control WOFF/Jane and her leadership had over my life. I was under the illusion until the last few months of my time there that I was in control of my life and “walk with God”. What a joke! That was the major part of the deception.  In my opinion, WOFF members do not see or are even allowed to admit to themselves or others that there is a problem with WOFF-life. WOFF members are required to check their religious freedoms, as well as other freedoms that others in this country enjoy- check them at the door give them up for the faux promise of “fulfilling their call” and making it into heaven. It is no wonder people leave that group in emotional turmoil and upheaval. There is such an adjustment to make when exiting any religious control group. “Join Us” documents some of the struggles.  

  A paraphrase of what Paul Martin says in the film, of the over 300 groups that we have seen come through here, (Wellspring) each and every one of them has said “We only, we have the Truth.” Does WOFF claim to have “Truth”? I have realized since leaving that Jane and her members long for the chance to “give Truth” to those who dare to doubt WOFF-life or challenge the validity of Jane’s gift or knowledge of God’s will. CD stood up in a service and said, “We know there are others out there who have truth, we just haven’t found them yet.” That was preceded and followed by Jane worship as this woman, CD, went on to praise and adore Jane and Sam for the work they had done and the persecution they had endured. I thought she would need a tissue to catch the slobber that oozes when one gets in that state. I am not sure Jane and her crew really looks for others that have “truth”.  She appears too comfortable in the “truth” she practices.

    Near the end of the film, it is revealed that the Anderson County authorities would not move forward with criminal prosecution of Raimund Melz. As a note, in the document shown from the investigation summary statements, Raimund Melz is spelled wrong! How close could they have been paying attention after all that time to spell his name wrong? I agreed when Paul Martin said that local authorities are not trained properly to investigate cults. That was/is very evident. It was also noted that Joaquin Sullivan and some other ex-members of Mountain Rock Church were pursuing a civil action against Raimund Melz. They were hoping to take back the church property and sell it and donate the proceeds to charity, a lofty goal. I have wondered how that turned out.

    So, this past weekend, I was traveling back from a family gathering in Georgia. I passed through Anderson, SC and did some investigation. I found the church building, but there was a new sign hung over the old one. It drove home the realities of the film as I peered inside the front doors and saw the front of the sanctuary as it was shown in the film! No one was around and the parsonage behind the church appeared vacant. Another church was using the building, but there were no telephone numbers listed on any of the signs. However, I found a motor-home parked in the parking lot. It had the words –“Evangelistic Healing Ministry” on the back with a telephone number. I remembered in the film Raimund Melz saying he would go to Europe, “..to go to Europe will be very hard, but I must obey, God.” I concluded the motor-home must be the new pastor’s as well as the telephone number since it was an “864” area code. I took the pictures below and drove away. After driving a little ways I turned back and raised the sign to make sure I had the right place. See the picture… I did have the right place.

   Monday, I was on my way to work and called the number to ask the new pastor some questions. I was surprised when Raimund Melz answered the phone!  He did not sound like he was in Europe! I fumbled around and told him who I was. I asked about the motor-home and the new group in the church building. He said the motor-home was his and he had rented out the building for the last two years to the group in there now. No, I was not prepared and did not have any further questions for him. I thanked him and hung-up. But, the questions came after I hung up! So, I have done more research and have found in county records many of the names of the folks in the film. These findings have only inspired me to go further and take another trip to Anderson in the near future. I want to visit subdivision mentioned in the film “The Heritage”, as well as follow-up on some other property searches and information. Who knows I may call Raimund Melz and ask him some more questions. Why? Because he bears so many of the same characteristics that Jane Whaley has and it fascinates me how someone could continue on after such a fiasco portrayed in the film. Yes, I am curious to see if he has another group of followers.  

    Thank you, for taking time to visit and read this blog. Please, consume the information on this site responsibly. The author is not a licensed mental health professional and encourages those that need professional help to seek it. The intent of the material is to inform and be a resource. Be sure to tell every member that you know at WOFF about this blog. There are readers at WOFF. Comments are invited from all readers, including present or former members. Polls are not scientific and no private information is gathered.

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       (Please, take time to read the Terms of Use for this personal blog. As mentioned, the information about WOFF is from my memories and recollections as perfect as that may be or not be. ) Scripture references are Amplified Version unless otherwise noted. (Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation ) This is post number 290.